Technology can improve human life in significant ways and aid in the fight against troublesome illnesses. Unfortunately, no technology is perfect — and newer technologies are especially prone to growing pains.There are three major problems in today's medical devices and wearables market: potential sabotage of the devices themselves, devices as a backdoor into networks and patient data, and device manufacturers taking advantage of regulatory loopholes to get their products on the market.1. Many
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Security Vulnerabilities Detected in ICDs: Addressing Ransomware Risk in Medical Devices
Medical device usage is on the rise, and that reality potentially puts people at risk if those gadgets have security flaws. It's crucial for device manufacturers, industry regulators and health practitioners to work together to ensure safety are paramount as adoption rises.Internal health devices are particularly at risk, especially since patients and providers may not immediately notice issues. The people who use or prescribe them assume they'll work as expected and typically don't have ways to
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6 Patient Influencers Redefining The Healthcare Landscape
Most people are now familiar with social media influencers. They're the individuals who use their popularity to encourage followers to try clothing brands, food, makeup, and gadgets. As anyone who watched either of the two Fyre Festival documentaries now knows, they can be instrumental in getting people on board with things associated with disastrous consequences.
There's a relatively new concept in the influencer world. It involves people known as patient influencers doing just as the name
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Is The Internet of Medical Things (IoMT) on Par With the IoT Market as a Whole?
The Internet of Things (IoT) has bred a variety of new technology solutions, used across just as many disparate industries. The Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) is essentially IoT devices used within construction, development and industrial environments.Similarly, the Internet of Medical Things (IoMT) involves connected devices used within the medical and health care industry.They differ from general IoT not just in terms of usage, but also in design. IoT is often more consumer-focused,
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Why the FDA Is Doing an Overhaul of the Medical Device Approval Process
Since 1976, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has allowed manufacturers to apply for an accelerated pathway to bringing their devices to the market. It's called the 501(k) Premarket Notification. In short, if a new device gets proved safe and effective to a device that's already available, the new device can get cleared because it's considered substantially similar to the older one. The FDA also allows for the first-cleared device (also known as the predicate) to be another product
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How Surgical Robots are Transforming the Operating Room
During a traditional medical operation or surgery, the senior physician is at the helm with supporting doctors and nurses huddled nearby. Often, this process entails surrounding a patient who is positioned on a surgery table.Instruments will be stored in the same room, with nurses and assistants passing the necessary components to the doctor. Everyone listens, everyone works together, and it’s a close-knit, collaborative process.But that’s not how modern surgeries work anymore, at least not when
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The Rise of Real-Time Location Tracking (RTLS) Adoption in Healthcare
The healthcare industry is one where inefficiency leads to significant productivity losses and could contribute to loss of life.That's why a system that keeps track of people, medicines and other essentials is exceptionally advantageous in that sector. Besides boosting productivity, real-time location systems (RTLS) could increase patient satisfaction and more.RTLS Adoption in Healthcare Is On the RiseA forecast showing the state of the RTLS healthcare industry predicts the total worth will
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6 Leading Health Chatbots to Watch in 2018 & Beyond
Chatbots have become almost commonplace in e-commerce, but they have recently started to emerge in the healthcare sector, as well. Various small companies are currently developing apps and raising venture capital, while some have already launched their chatbots.What are health chatbots, exactly? Chatbots are services that people interact with through a messenger. Instead of having a conversation with another person, the user talks with a bot that's either powered by basic rules or machine
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How Blockchain Technology Could Help Prevent Medical Fraud
Most people know blockchain as the transaction ledger associated with cryptocurrency transactions. However, evidence suggests a specific use for it that applies to health professionals — reducing medical fraud. Blockchain’s Innate Characteristics May Cut Down on FraudIndividuals think blockchain shows promise for minimizing fraud in medicine because of some of the features it offers. For example, many fraudulent practices in the health industry and elsewhere begin when people manipulate or
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Protecting Medical Device Security in the Age of Ransomware
From medication pumps to pacemakers, people depend on lifesaving devices to live their healthiest possible lives and manage chronic ailments. Many of those patients likely hear about cybercriminals orchestrating massive data breaches, and might get concerned about one of those incidents compromising their information.However, they probably haven’t considered the hackers might target the devices in their bodies or the ones they otherwise use for better well-being.Hospitals Must Pay Attention to
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